The Natural Impulse: Accomplishment

20 Outdoor Achievements That Will Change Your Mind & Body

We all want to accomplish our goals. Whether it's losing 20 pounds or it's just getting through the day in one piece, goals make life worth living and there's no better feeling than when you finally get it done. Some goals are "like climbing a mountain" but why not do the actual thing and just climb a mountain? If you're wondering what the benefit would be, well, you'll never get a better view than from the top. WIth that in mind, here are 20 of the toughest — and most jaw-dropping — challenges that nature can provide.

Hike Angels Landing

By the time you reach the top of Zion National Park’s Angels Landing, you’ll feel like you hiked a lot farther than 2.5 miles. You’ll have scrambled up a dramatic rock fin flanked by hundreds of feet of wide‐open gravity, tiptoeing across off‐camber ledges, muscling through short, steep sprints and clinging with white knuckles to chains bolted to the rock. While it’s one of the most popular trails in the National Park System, missteps have resulted in fatal falls. At the top, your work pays off in an unforgettable panorama of deep‐red canyon walls, snaking river and lush, tree‐filled canyon floor.

Hike Mount Katahdin

Thru‐hiking the 2,180‐mile Appalachian Trail is perhaps the most famous adventure in American hiking, but not everyone has the time or wherewithal for such a trip. Enjoy a tiny taste by making the 5‐mile journey up to the top of Mount Katahdin, the AT’s northern terminus. Don’t expect the hike to be a carefree stroll in Baxter State Park — the route is considered one of the most difficult stretches of the entire Appalachian Trail. As you take in the incredible views from Maine’s highest peak, imagine what it would feel like if you just spent months hiking the first 2,175 miles.

Heli-Hike The Bugaboo Mountains

Helicopters aren’t just for skiing and emergency rescues. A heli‐hiking adventure in the beautiful Bugaboo Mountains of eastern British Columbia whisks you far away from the crowds that are almost guaranteed on other scenic hikes. Expect to see powerful, jagged peaks, colorful wildflower explosions, rushing rivers and diverse wildlife on this once‐in‐a‐lifetime‐level adventure. Don’t expect to see many other trail users.

Hike The Lost Coast Trail North

Bubbly blondes in bikinis, world‐class surfers and dune buggies are all images that come to mind when the words “California” and “beach” get together. Quiet, peaceful nature hiking is not usually a close fourth, but it can indeed be found on the California coast. Escape the traffic of Southern California’s beaches for the 25‐mile Lost Coast Trail. This stretch of dirt provides a coastal wilderness experience complete with wildflowers, isolated beaches, tide pools and mountains‐meet‐ocean views.

Hike The Long Trail

Stretching across the rocky Green Mountain spine of Vermont, the Long Trail is the United States’ oldest long‐distance hiking trail, having roots back to the early 20th century. Immerse yourself in New England hardwood forest, breathe in the fresh air and ponder the trail’s great history as you hike all or part of this 273‐mile backcountry route.

Hike The Superior Hiking Trail

One of the best long hikes in the Midwest, Minnesota’s Superior Trail traces nearly 300 miles of ridgeline overlooking Lake Superior. In addition to grand views of the lake, the trail will deliver you to plunging waterfalls, soaring cliffs, murmuring streams and thick, colorful forests. With trailheads located every 5 to 10 miles, no required fees or permits for hiking or camping, and a shuttle service to help you connect points, there’s little standing in the way of hiking the entire trail section by section.

Hike The Crater Rim Trail

Experience the vitality of the earth below your feet on the 11‐mile Crater Rim Trail. The challenging hike takes you through a steaming, bubbling live volcano. In fact, a section of the trail remains closed due to the active eruption of the Halemaumau Crater. Take care to stay on the marked trail to avoid steam, lava, cliffs and other hazards.

Walk The Copper Canyon

Mexico’s Las Barrancas del Cobre (Copper Canyon) beats out the Grand Canyon for the title of longest and deepest canyon in North America. Diving into the canyon on foot is the premier way to experience the vastness of this stretch of rugged, river‐carved land. Don’t go it alone, though; hire a guide for a multi‐day trek and let a sure‐footed burro carry your gear for you.

Hike The Half Dome

One of the most famous pieces of rock in the world is also the backdrop for one of America’s great hikes. The 15‐mile round trip hike to the top of 8,840‐foot Half Dome includes an absolutely breathtaking (in both scenery and elevation gain) approach followed by a cable‐assisted scramble straight up the rock itself. After clawing and climbing your way to the top, all that’s left to do is relax and enjoy expansive views of the Yosemite Valley and surrounding mountains.

Ice Walk Along The Columbia Icefield

One of the many must‐sees of the stunning Canadian Rockies, the Columbia Icefield lets you get intimate with the region’s glacial geography. Ride out onto the Athabasca Glacier in a large, rugged ice bus, step onto the ice, and enjoy millions of years worth of that ice’s handiwork in the form of massive, glacially carved mountains. While the Athabasca Glacier is quite popular and accessible, it’s not without its hazards; glacial crevasses can kill, so be sure to travel with a guide and follow all regulations.

Hike Mt. Mitchell

A worthy detour off the famous Blue Ridge Parkway scenic drive, North Carolina’s 6,684‐foot Mt. Mitchell is the high point of the eastern United States, offering a major milestone for peak baggers. When you hike the 5.5 miles to the top, you can take satisfaction in being a dirty, sweaty hiker amidst the sea of auto tourists who took the road up. And if you’re short on time, you can take advantage of that road, driving or hitching your way back down.

Trek Through Four Pass Loop

Aspen’s Maroon Bells are some of the most prized mountain peaks in the United States’ mountain state, and the 26‐mile Four Pass Loop is among the very best ways to experience them. This veritable trekking marathon serves up all the quintessential mountain scenery — rugged, snow‐dusted mountains, sparkling alpine lakes, evergreen forests and raging rivers — while pushing you up four 12,000‐foot mountain passes.

Hike Mont Jacques Cartier

The traditional Appalachian Trail may end in Maine, but the International Appalachian Trail promises to connect it with Greenland, Western Europe and Northern Africa. The trip up Mont Jacques Cartier in Quebec’s Parc national de la Gaspésie represents one of the best day hikes in the Canadian section. As you take the 5‐mile round trip to the 4,160‐foot mountain, imagine it as part of a massive Pangaean mountain range that the International Appalachian Trail seeks to reconnect.

Hike The Kalalau Trail

Camping on secluded Hawaiian beaches with no road access? That’s worth a backpacking trip in itself. The 11‐mile Kalalau Trail offers that and plenty more, providing the only land access to its part of Kauai’s rugged Na Pali Coast. The trail hugs the cliffs high above the brilliant blue waters of the Pacific Ocean, forcing you to overcome dizzying exposure, steep climbs and descents, and slick, eroded trail surfaces. Your beach retreat will be all that much sweeter after earning it on this heart‐racing slice of technical trail.

Explore Fundy Circuit

The Bay of Fundy is home to the world’s highest tides, a phenomenon that has carved out an incredible landscape of cliffs, sea caves and sea stacks. The Fundy Circuit drops you into Fundy National Park, connecting seven individual trails over 30 miles. You’ll travel along the coast, over rivers and into forests for a five‐sense feast of park scenery.

Conquer The Highline Loop Trail

The 12‐mile Highline Loop Trail edges its way along the Continental Divide, over sweeping valleys walled in by sky‐brushing peaks and buttes. The first mile of the trail from Logan Pass tests your resolve, forcing you across a narrow ledge carved into a vertical wall. Conquer any fear of heights with help from the support cable and press on; you’ll be rewarded with scenery so beautiful and vast you’ll consistently feel like an insignificant speck of organic matter.

Reach Tea House Challenge

Ordinarily, you have to bring a lunch when exploring a land as wild as Banff National Park, but the 9‐mile Tea House Challenge offers its own refreshments inside two fairy tale‐like historic tea houses. Stroll and climb past scenic shoreline, monolithic mountains, hanging valleys, glaciers and snowfields. Depending upon when hunger strikes, you can slink into a chair at the Lake Agnes Tea House and/or Plain of Six Glaciers Tea House and indulge in a much‐needed refueling amidst some of the world’s most amazing scenery.

Walk The East Coast Trail

Newfoundland and Labrador’s East Coast Trail is the easternmost hiking trail in North America, but it feels like a different continent entirely. Stomp your way over 165 developed miles to earn views of the Atlantic Ocean, icebergs, fjords, sea stacks and even a wave‐powered geyser. In addition to these natural wonders, the trail also winds through dozens of historic communities and abandoned coastal settlements, providing a real feel for the history of the region.

Hike The Sourdough Mountain Trail

An oft‐forgotten gem of the national park system, North Cascades National Park receives a fraction of the number of visitors of Washington’s Olympic and Mount Rainier National Parks, making it a great place to find a quieter slice of natural beauty. The Sourdough Mountain Trail tests you with a grueling climb of nearly 5,000 vertical feet over 5 miles, but it rewards with views of mountains, glaciers, lakes and volcanoes from a historic lookout tower planted atop the mountain.

Backpack Through The Chilkoot Trail

Intertwine North American history and stunning scenery by tackling the international Chilkoot Trail, made infamous during the Klondike Gold Rush. The three‐to-five‐day backpacking trip will take you from the coastal community of Dyea, Alaska, through coastal rain forest, along churning rivers, up the notorious Golden Stairs into Canada and onward to Lake Bennett, British Columbia. At the end, take satisfaction in knowing you just hiked “the meanest 33 miles of history.”